And it was great! We played through Part One of Lost Mines and had an awesome time. One of my friends had his High Elf Wizard killed by Klarg (who almost wiped out the whole party) but built a Human Cleric character that seemed to do really well. I think my favourite part was when my friend's Dragonborn Paladin tried to intimidate Klarg, failed and was knocked out in a single swing of the Morningstar.
I know I missed a lot of stuff out and we had to take things quite slow but I really didn't expect to have as much fun as we all seemed to.
With that being said, I do have a few things I can think of off the top of my head that I am unsure of.
In regards to the Goblins, it says that they have a 4+ to hit with either Scimitar or Shortbow. Does that mean that you add 4 to whatever is rolled on the D20 and then add 4 as the modifier and is that modifier already inclusive of the DEX modifier or is the latter added on top of that?
Also, I didn't really make much use of a grid because I'm a little unsure of how to utilize one effectively and also the rooms in the Cragmaw Hideout seemed small enough that everyone would pretty much be in range of everyone so I didn't really make use of a grid there. Any advise on how to integrate a grid successfully and in a way that's manageable to a beginner?
I'll add one more thing as a simple observation which is that I was quite surprised by how tough the starter set seemed to be. Klarg was honestly within one good roll of wiping out the entire party if my friend's Sorcerer hadn't managed to pull off shocking grasp and finish him at the last moment. At first I wondered if this was down to me DMing wrong but then I discovered that others have had this experience. I do kind of like it this way though, it keeps you on your toes...
I know I missed a lot of stuff out and we had to take things quite slow but I really didn't expect to have as much fun as we all seemed to.
It can feel a little clunky at first, it will get easier within a few sessions. Either way, as long as everyone is having fun and it's not feeling like a slog, it's all good. As for missing things, you can always work them into the campaign down the road or just skip them. It's up to you.
In regards to the Goblins, it says that they have a 4+ to hit with either Scimitar or Shortbow. Does that mean that you add 4 to whatever is rolled on the D20 and then add 4 as the modifier and is that modifier already inclusive of the DEX modifier or is the latter added on top of that?
If a creature has a +4 to hit in their stat black, that means that you are going to add 4 to the result of the attack roll (d20) and that's it. That +4 to hit includes the monster's proficiency and ability score mod already baked into it. In essence, it's a shorthand version of what the players do when they make an attack roll.
Finally, there is a forum specifically dedicated to DMs and it is full of friendly people. There are threads about using grids, using music in your sessions, and resources for helping you hone your skills as a DM. So, I would encourage you to stop over there and post up any questions you have.
Also, I didn't really make much use of a grid because I'm a little unsure of how to utilize one effectively and also the rooms in the Cragmaw Hideout seemed small enough that everyone would pretty much be in range of everyone so I didn't really make use of a grid there. Any advise on how to integrate a grid successfully and in a way that's manageable to a beginner?
People have different views on grids. Some people use them all the time, some people never use them and rely exclusively on theater of the mind, and some people fall in the middle. I'm one of those middle people. If it's something I can easily explain to the players and it's a smaller scale encounter, I will generally run theater of the mind. If it's a bigger place, there are more complex features (like difficult terrain or numerous traps), or there are a lot of enemies, I will use the grid. My suggestion would be to use it when you can't keep the details of the room/dungeon straight in your head, when you feel like you can't accurately and concisely describe where they are, or when a player needs a visual to help them get their bearings.
When I do use the grid though, it is just quick sketches, I'm not drawing something super elaborate - just basic lines, squares and circles using the vis-a-vis markers. Sometimes the grid is nice to draw out a sketch of a symbol they find or something similar. It can also be helpful to sketch out a quick high level map of where they are in a certain location or out in the world. I'm talking really high level stuff, e.g. "You're here, City A is over there and Town B is over there. In between both of them is the Forest of Trees and off to the west is the Desert of Sand. Far north is the Mountains of Rocks that Steve Steverson back in town had mentioned. Which direction do you want to head?"
Lost Mine of Phandelver is a terrific adventure to start with. Klarg is for sure a great foe to face and it sounds like the party handled it well - it is a tough fight for certain and they survived...barely. That's the stuff heroes are made of. :)
I accidentally sent my PCs into an unbalanced battle with the Rebrands and one of them died. So yeah, new DMing can be a challenge :) Lead to some great RP when the new character was introduced though. It made me nervous when we came to the hobgoblin encounter in the hideout and i made it very clear these guys were tough, but they decided to persist and cleaned them up pretty good.
Lost Mine of Phandelver is a terrific adventure to start with. Klarg is for sure a great foe to face and it sounds like the party handled it well - it is a tough fight for certain and they survived...barely. That's the stuff heroes are made of. :)
I accidentally sent my PCs into an unbalanced battle with the Rebrands and one of them died. So yeah, new DMing can be a challenge :) Lead to some great RP when the new character was introduced though. It made me nervous when we came to the hobgoblin encounter in the hideout and i made it very clear these guys were tough, but they decided to persist and cleaned them up pretty good.
Well see this is the thing that surprised me most, just how difficult the combat should be. I mean my very first action in the initial Goblin ambush was to have one of the bow Goblins shoot at my my friend's Dwarf Sorcerer and I took over half his hit points on that first shot. I think everyone was pretty stunned. I have to say I quite like this level of difficulty, it really keeps everything exciting and unpredictable.
Lost Mine of Phandelver is a terrific adventure to start with. Klarg is for sure a great foe to face and it sounds like the party handled it well - it is a tough fight for certain and they survived...barely. That's the stuff heroes are made of. :)
I accidentally sent my PCs into an unbalanced battle with the Rebrands and one of them died. So yeah, new DMing can be a challenge :) Lead to some great RP when the new character was introduced though. It made me nervous when we came to the hobgoblin encounter in the hideout and i made it very clear these guys were tough, but they decided to persist and cleaned them up pretty good.
Well see this is the thing that surprised me most, just how difficult the combat should be. I mean my very first action in the initial Goblin ambush was to have one of the bow Goblins shoot at my my friend's Dwarf Sorcerer and I took over half his hit points on that first shot. I think everyone was pretty stunned. I have to say I quite like this level of difficulty, it really keeps everything exciting and unpredictable.
Many an adventurer has fallen to that goblin ambush. It sounds to me like you juggled everything well for your first time as a DM, so kudos for that and here is to many, many more excited adventures for you and your players!
I've got a question relating to the Evil Mage stats. Where it's discussing the spells the mage gets it says 4 1st level spells but includes charm person and magic missile along with 3 slots for level 2 with hold person and misty step listed. Does that mean I get to pick two additional spells for level 1 and 1 additional for level 2?
I've got a question relating to the Evil Mage stats. Where it's discussing the spells the mage gets it says 4 1st level spells but includes charm person and magic missile along with 3 slots for level 2 with hold person and misty step listed. Does that mean I get to pick two additional spells for level 1 and 1 additional for level 2?
The way a monster or NPC spellcaster is laid out is as follows:
The level of spell, such as 1st or 2nd (the number of times that level of spell can be cast before needing rest to replenish): the names of spells which are an option for the creature/character each time it casts a spell.
So when the Mage's stats say "1st level (4 slots): charm person, magic missile" that means the mage can cast a 1st level spell 4 times, and each time they do they choose between charm person or magic missile.
I've got a question relating to the Evil Mage stats. Where it's discussing the spells the mage gets it says 4 1st level spells but includes charm person and magic missile along with 3 slots for level 2 with hold person and misty step listed. Does that mean I get to pick two additional spells for level 1 and 1 additional for level 2?
The way a monster or NPC spellcaster is laid out is as follows:
The level of spell, such as 1st or 2nd (the number of times that level of spell can be cast before needing rest to replenish): the names of spells which are an option for the creature/character each time it casts a spell.
So when the Mage's stats say "1st level (4 slots): charm person, magic missile" that means the mage can cast a 1st level spell 4 times, and each time they do they choose between charm person or magic missile.
Right, that makes sense! Thanks.
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And it was great! We played through Part One of Lost Mines and had an awesome time. One of my friends had his High Elf Wizard killed by Klarg (who almost wiped out the whole party) but built a Human Cleric character that seemed to do really well. I think my favourite part was when my friend's Dragonborn Paladin tried to intimidate Klarg, failed and was knocked out in a single swing of the Morningstar.
I know I missed a lot of stuff out and we had to take things quite slow but I really didn't expect to have as much fun as we all seemed to.
With that being said, I do have a few things I can think of off the top of my head that I am unsure of.
In regards to the Goblins, it says that they have a 4+ to hit with either Scimitar or Shortbow. Does that mean that you add 4 to whatever is rolled on the D20 and then add 4 as the modifier and is that modifier already inclusive of the DEX modifier or is the latter added on top of that?
Also, I didn't really make much use of a grid because I'm a little unsure of how to utilize one effectively and also the rooms in the Cragmaw Hideout seemed small enough that everyone would pretty much be in range of everyone so I didn't really make use of a grid there. Any advise on how to integrate a grid successfully and in a way that's manageable to a beginner?
I'll add one more thing as a simple observation which is that I was quite surprised by how tough the starter set seemed to be. Klarg was honestly within one good roll of wiping out the entire party if my friend's Sorcerer hadn't managed to pull off shocking grasp and finish him at the last moment. At first I wondered if this was down to me DMing wrong but then I discovered that others have had this experience. I do kind of like it this way though, it keeps you on your toes...
First, I'm glad your session went well and you and everyone else at the table had fun - welcome to the community!
If a creature has a +4 to hit in their stat black, that means that you are going to add 4 to the result of the attack roll (d20) and that's it. That +4 to hit includes the monster's proficiency and ability score mod already baked into it. In essence, it's a shorthand version of what the players do when they make an attack roll.
Finally, there is a forum specifically dedicated to DMs and it is full of friendly people. There are threads about using grids, using music in your sessions, and resources for helping you hone your skills as a DM. So, I would encourage you to stop over there and post up any questions you have.
Welcome again!
I just realized that I missed your question about using grids...
People have different views on grids. Some people use them all the time, some people never use them and rely exclusively on theater of the mind, and some people fall in the middle. I'm one of those middle people. If it's something I can easily explain to the players and it's a smaller scale encounter, I will generally run theater of the mind. If it's a bigger place, there are more complex features (like difficult terrain or numerous traps), or there are a lot of enemies, I will use the grid. My suggestion would be to use it when you can't keep the details of the room/dungeon straight in your head, when you feel like you can't accurately and concisely describe where they are, or when a player needs a visual to help them get their bearings.
Thanks Mittens, I think I'll look through the rest of the starter set soon and decide if I need a grid anywhere.
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InsiderCongrats on running your first game!
Lost Mine of Phandelver is a terrific adventure to start with. Klarg is for sure a great foe to face and it sounds like the party handled it well - it is a tough fight for certain and they survived...barely. That's the stuff heroes are made of. :)
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I accidentally sent my PCs into an unbalanced battle with the Rebrands and one of them died. So yeah, new DMing can be a challenge :) Lead to some great RP when the new character was introduced though. It made me nervous when we came to the hobgoblin encounter in the hideout and i made it very clear these guys were tough, but they decided to persist and cleaned them up pretty good.
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InsiderContent director for Nerdarchy.com
Lifelong gamer and writer
I've got a question relating to the Evil Mage stats. Where it's discussing the spells the mage gets it says 4 1st level spells but includes charm person and magic missile along with 3 slots for level 2 with hold person and misty step listed. Does that mean I get to pick two additional spells for level 1 and 1 additional for level 2?